Bible and Western Culture Final Paper Description
MUST HAVE READ: John Collins, Introduction the Hebrew Bible, especially the sections on “Proverbs” and “Job/Qoheleth.”
Style/Approach: The paper is an informed reflection paper. You do not need to cite any secondary works beyond the Bible. But your reflections should take into account the ideas expressed main textbook for the course, John Collins, Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. That is, you do not have to quote Collins, or any other book or video, but please take the time to read Collins’s discussion of Ecclesiastes and other wisdom books very carefully and let them generally shape how you approach the text. If you do quote a writer/book/video lecture, such as Collins, Introduction to the Hebrew Bible, then please use quotation marks and provide a footnote reference to avoid plagiarism.
Bible and Western Culture Final Paper Structure and Purpose
Structure and Purpose: The purpose of the paper is to explain the main idea(s) of the Book of Ecclesiastes and contrast this with the other wisdom books (Proverbs, Job). Here is how I would like for you to structure your paper. (Note: the suggested lengths for each section below are only suggestions; don’t get too rigid with them.)
Spend the first page or so introducing wisdom literature generally. What is wisdom literature about? What are the wisdom books of the Old Testament? What makes these books unique, and what holds them together as a genre? (1 page)
Next, focus on Proverbs for a page or so. Explain how Proverbs sets forth a fairly black-and-white picture of the world where good is rewarded and evil is punished. Give some examples by quoting some proverbs from the Book of Proverbs. This section might take most of a page. (1 page)
Now, transition to talk about the other side of wisdom literature: the dark side. Turn to the Book of Job, and give a paragraph summary. This will start to set the stage for Ecclesiastes by showing the contrast between Proverbs and Job because in the Book of Job the righteous suffer for mysterious reasons. You’ve now got the stage set for Ecclesiastes. (half-page)
Give a brief overview of the structure/outline of the Book of Ecclesiastes. Give half a page or so of introduction. (half-page)
Interpreting Ecclesiastes Bible and Western Culture Final Paper
Then move to talk about the problems with interpreting Ecclesiastes: what’s this book really saying? What the problem with the world according to the author of Ecclesiastes? What’s the author’s solution to this problem? Don’t forget to quote from Ecclesiastes here to make your argument. If you’re brave, you might want to tackle the issue of the second author or final editor of the Book of Ecclesiastes whose voice appears in chapter 12—and what this says about the message of Ecclesiastes as a whole. (3 pages)
Conclude by circling back to connect the message of Ecclesiastes with the message of Proverbs and Job. Compare and contrast. You might also want ever so briefly to conclude with a compare-and-contrast closing paragraph in which you show how Ecclesiastes differs from or (if you think so) adheres to the message of other biblical books. (1 page or so)
